Easy-to-assemble sofa and method of packaging therefor

ABSTRACT

An easy-to-assemble sofa along with a method of packaging its components so as to consume the smallest possible space during shipping. The sofa includes arms and rails that may be assembled to form a frame. A seat deck and rear deck are installed to the arms and rails. Cushions are placed atop the seat deck, and foam cushions are placed in front of the rear deck to form the sofa&#39;s seating surfaces. To conserve space during shipping, the compressible seat cushions and rear cushions are placed between the rigid seat deck and rear deck. The entire assembly is banded with woven bands to maintain it in a compact compressed condition during shipping, which may all be in a single cardboard container. This method of packing allows the parts of the sofa to be packed in as compact a container as possible, saving money on shipping and storage.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/443,472, filed Feb. 16, 2011. The entirety of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/443,472 is incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates generally to furniture, and more specifically, to an easy-to-assemble sofa and a method of packing the sofa parts together in a highly compact manner.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

Furniture items generally, and sofas in particular, have traditionally been fully assembled in a factory, then shipped to retailers and delivered to the consumer in the fully assembled condition. A fully assembled sofa is bulky and, therefore, a significant portion of the total cost of a sofa sold at retail is the cost of shipping and storage. Presented here is an easy-to-assemble sofa that may be packed into a single, extremely compact, shipping box and assembled either by a retailer or by a consumer after shipping. By packing the sofa in a manner specially devised to conserve space, the cost of shipping is lowered and the amount of warehouse space necessary to store the sofa is reduced. Shipping the entire sofa, including all structural, aesthetic, and comfort-enhancing components, in a single box is convenient for the retailer and the consumer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosed devices and methods of use may be best understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numerals identify like elements in the several figures and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective, exploded view of an easy-to-assemble sofa of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sofa of FIG. 1, fully assembled;

FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional side view of the easy-to-assemble sofa of FIG. 2, taken along lines 2A-2A of FIG. 2;

FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of selected sofa components packed for shipping;

FIG. 4 is a side perspective view of selected sofa components packed for shipping;

FIG. 5 is a side perspective view of selected sofa components packed for shipping; and

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of sofa components being packed in a container for shipping.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The easy-to-assemble sofa 10 of the present disclosure, illustrated in FIG. 2, is shipped unassembled in order to make it more compact during shipping, with all unassembled components fitting within a single rectangular cardboard box. The components of the sofa 10 are sized and arranged so that they may be fit into as compact a container as possible. Additionally, certain techniques are employed to save additional space when the sofa components are packed for shipping. An exploded view of the components of sofa 10 is illustrated in FIG. 1, and a cross-sectional view of an assembled sofa 10 is illustrated in FIG. 2A.

The sofa 10 has two arms 12 which form the ends of the completed sofa 10. Each of the arms 12 is a minor image of the other, such that each arm 12 has an outward-facing surface, and an inward facing surface that faces the inward facing surface of the opposite arm 12 when the sofa 10 is fully assembled. The inward facing surface of each arm 12 connects to an end of a front rail 14 near the front edge of each arm 12, and to an end of a rear rail 16 near the rear edge of each arm 12, so as to form a rectangular shaped frame when viewed from above.

The front rail 14 may be provided with a pair of L-shaped brackets including mounting plates 13 extending perpendicular to the axis of the front rail 14, one of the mounting plates 13 extending from either end of the front rail 14. Each of the mounting plates 13 has at least two keyhole-shaped openings 15 therethrough to securely receive bolts projecting inwardly from the arms 12. The front rail 14 may be provided with recessed portions 17 at the ends, to which a portion of the L-shaped brackets extending perpendicularly to the mounting plates 13 may be secured, in order to minimize the extent to which the mounting plates 13 project beyond the maximum thickness of the front rail 14, thereby facilitating compact packaging of the sofa components.

The arms 12, front rail 14, and rear rail 16 are preferably built with an internal frame composed of a rigid material such as metal or wood, and are upholstered on their exterior. Foam or other padding may be included below the upholstered outer surfaces of arms 12, front rail 14, and rear rail 16, if desired, to enhance appearance and/or comfort. Alternatively or in addition to upholstery, the arms 12, front rail 14, and rear rail 16 may include exposed solid surfaces, such as finished wood, for decorative purposes. Threaded fasteners (not shown) may be used to attach the front rail 14 and rear rail 16 to the arms 12.

Four or more legs 18 may be provided, if desired, to stand the sofa 10 off of the floor. Legs 18 are mounted to the bottom surface of arms 12, front rail 14, or rear rail 16, but most preferably, two legs 18 are installed to the bottom surface of each of the arms 12 near the four outer corners of the sofa 10. As illustrated in FIG. 1, threaded fasteners extending from the tops of legs 18 may be used to firmly attach the legs 18 to the bottom surface of arms 12.

A center brace 19 is securable, such as by threaded fasteners, to upper central portions of the front rail 14 and the rear rail 16. The center brace adds stability and transmits vertical loads from the seat deck 20 to the front and rear rails 16, and ultimately to the arms 12 and legs 18.

The seat deck 20 and rear deck 22 are each comprised of a substantially rectangular, rigid metal outer frame with rigid cross-members spaced at equal intervals within the outer frame, the cross-members being substantially parallel to the short sides of the rectangular outer frame. Both the outer frame and cross-members of seat deck 20 and rear deck 22 are preferably constructed of tubular steel. The rigid metal outer frame comprising seat deck 20 and rear deck 22 includes holes 23 in various places to accept threaded fasteners. Preferably, the seat deck 20 is adapted to receive a single bolt 25 (or similar threaded fastener) through each of two holes 23 for securement to respective seat brackets 36, one of which seat brackets 36 is mounted on each of the arms 12. The seat deck 20 and rear deck 22 may be of any size and shape to create a particular style or design of sofa, but are preferably rectangular and of the same size and shape. If desired, the seat deck 20 and rear deck 22 may be identical, though preferably, the rear deck 22 is secured to each of two rear brackets 24 mounted to the arms 12 by a pair of bolts or other threaded fasteners, as opposed to the single bolt 25 or other threaded fastener employed to secure the seat deck 20 to each seat bracket 27.

A plurality of strap bands 21, made of a webbing of a fabric material, a non-woven material, hook-and-loop fastener material, or other material with noise-dampening characteristics, are preferably attached to the seat deck 20, in a direction perpendicular to the cross-members of the seat deck 20. The strap bands 21 serve to dampen undesirable sound that may otherwise occur when one sits on the sofa 10. The strap bands 21 may be attached to the seat deck 20 prior to shipment, or alternatively, if the individual strap bands 21 are continuous, they may be installed during assembly of the sofa 10 by slipping them over a side of the seat deck 20, as illustrated in FIG. 1. If the strap bands are discontinuous, each may be secured lengthwise about the seat deck 20. The individual strap bands 21 may be coiled, as illustrated in FIG. 6, so as to be compact for shipment.

Rear deck 22 is fastened to the arms 12 using two or more rear brackets 24. The rear brackets 24 have an L-shaped cross-section with a 90 degree bend at their center, holes to receive one or, preferably, two bolts (or similar threaded fasteners) to secure the rear deck 22 to the arms 12, and the rear brackets 24 are preferably made of steel. One plate of each rear bracket 24 mounts flush against the inward-facing side of each arm 12 such that the other plate of the rear bracket 24 extends inward from arm 12. Threaded fasteners (not shown) are used to mount the rear brackets 24 to the inward facing surfaces of arms 12, and to mount the rear deck 22 to the rear brackets 24. As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the rear brackets 24 may be mounted against the inward facing side of arms 12 so as to hold the rear deck 22 vertical, or more preferably, they may be angled, such as at an angle α in the range of 95 degrees to 105 degrees from a horizontal plane, so as to hold the rear deck 22 in a slightly reclined position. The seat brackets 36 are also formed of L-shaped steel brackets, with the plates that face the seat deck 20 being preferably slanted at an angle θ in the range of 5 degrees to 20 degrees from a horizontal plane so that the seating surface is somewhat reclined from the horizontal plane. The seat brackets 27 and rear brackets 24 provide for accommodation of a variety of sofa styles, thereby providing a modularity, with the ability to select among a plurality of different sizes and types of sofa components to be packaged and shipped in a single box.

Like the rear deck 22, the seat deck 20 is also fastened to the inward facing surfaces of arms 12. One or more seat brackets 36 are mounted to the inward-facing surface of each arm 12. The seat brackets 36 are L-shaped metal brackets with a 90-degree angle, and have one or more holes to receive threaded fasteners on either side of the bend. The seat brackets 36 are preferably identical in construction to the rear brackets 24 to simplify manufacturing and reduce costs. One side of each seat bracket is mounted flush against the inward facing surface of each arm 12 using threaded fasteners (not shown). The other side of each seat bracket 36 extends inward from the inward facing side of arms 12, and provides a supporting surface for seat deck 20. The seat deck 20 is placed between the arms 12 such that the seat deck 20 rests upon the front rail 14 and the seat brackets 36. The seat deck 20 is then attached to the seat brackets 36 and, if desired, to the front rail 14, with threaded fasteners (not shown) to hold the seat deck 20 in place. The seat brackets 36 may be mounted so as to hold the seat deck 20 parallel to the floor, or preferably may be mounted slightly lower than the front rail 14 to decline the seat deck slightly, as illustrated in FIG. 2A.

To form the seating surfaces of the sofa 10, one or more seat cushions 26 are placed atop the seat deck 20 to provide the seating surface of the sofa 10. One seat cushion 26 of approximately the same length and width as the seat deck 20 may be employed, or alternatively, two or more seat cushions which may be placed side-by-side so as to completely cover the seat deck 20 may be employed instead. The one or more seat cushions 26 may be of foam or of a coil-spring design as is well known in the art, and are covered with upholstery. The sofa also includes one or more rear cushions 28. Like the seat cushions 26, one rear cushion 28 of approximately the same length and width as the rear deck 22 may be employed, or alternatively, two or more rear cushions 28 which may be placed side-by-side so as to completely cover the rear deck 22 may be employed instead. The one or more rear cushions 28 are made of a polyester fiber material, sized to approximately cover the rear deck 22 when installed. Rear cushion cover 30 is made of upholstery material and includes one cushion pocket 32 for each rear cushion 28 in its front face. Each cushion pocket 32 holds a rear cushion 28 within. The rear cushion cover 30 also includes a deck pocket 34. The deck pocket 34 is on the rear face of rear cushion cover 30, and its opening faces downward. One or more rear cushions 28 are placed within the cushion pocket(s) 32 of rear cushion cover 30. Next, the deck pocket 34 of rear cushion cover 30 is lowered onto the sofa rear deck 22. If desired, snaps, hook-and-loop fasteners, zippers, or some other device may be used to affix the upholstery of rear cushion cover 30 to the arms 12 and/or rear rail 14 of sofa 10 once the rear cushion cover 30 has been slid over the top of rear deck 24.

Both the seat and rear cushions, by nature, tend to be highly compressible, and therefore, certain techniques such as those disclosed herein may be employed to assemble them into the most densely packed assembly possible for shipping.

The rear cushions 28 are made with a highly compressible polyester fiber. To prepare them for shipping, the rear cushions 28 may be sealed in air-evacuable bags, also known as vacuum bags 42, which are commonly available. As air is evacuated from the vacuum bags 42, the rear cushions 28 are compressed and reduced in thickness. Once all evacuable air has been removed from the vacuum bags 42, the bags are sealed and the rear cushions 28 remain compressed within for shipment. When the sofa parts are unpacked from their shipping container for assembly, the vacuum bags 42 are opened by the customer and the rear cushions 28 are removed. Experience has shown that the polyester fiber rear cushions 28 do not return completely to their original thickness once removed from vacuum bags 42 for installation into the completed sofa 10; typically, a polyester fiber rear cushion 28 will only return to about two-thirds of its original thickness once removed from vacuum bag 42. Therefore, it is preferable to make the rear cushions 28 about 50 percent heavier than would otherwise be necessary so that the rear cushions 28 are of appropriate size at the time of unpacking and assembling sofa 10.

Several parts of the sofa 10 are then assembled into a sandwich assembly 40 for shipping. An example of a suitable sandwich assembly is illustrated in FIG. 3. First, the seat deck 20 is laid down, then the coil seat cushions 26 are laid down on top of the seat deck 20. The rear cushions 28, sealed in vacuum bags 42, are laid on top of the seat cushions 26. The rear deck 22 is laid on top of seat cushions 26. Because the seat deck 20, rear deck 22, seat cushions 26, and rear cushions 28 are of equal or nearly equal length and width, they form a uniform or nearly uniform stack.

A plurality of sewn woven bands 44 are applied to the stack. The plurality of bands 44 hold the compressed stack together. The contents of the stack tends to expand against the plurality of bands 44, urging the seat deck 20 and rear deck 22, which form the outsides of the sandwich assembly, against the bands 44.

In other words, the woven bands 44 restrain the stack from expanding and keep the seat cushions 26 and rear cushions 28 from decompressing to their original thickness once the external compressive force is removed. It is desirable to use a plurality of woven bands 44 spaced equally across the length of the stack; for example, a set of six equally spaced woven bands 44 has been used to successfully secure a sandwich assembly 40 for shipping. Once the woven bands 44 have been slipped around the stack and each has been placed in the desired location along the stack's length, the external compressive force may be removed.

The completed sandwich assembly 40 may be placed in shipping container 50 for shipping, as shown in FIG. 4. Shipping container 50 may be constructed of any suitable material, such as wood or corrugated cardboard. Shipping container 50 is of length and width approximately equal to or slightly greater than the sandwich assembly 40 such that the sandwich assembly 40 may be lowered inside with slight clearance around its edges. Shipping container 50 is of sufficiently greater height than sandwich assembly 40 so as to provide space for the remaining components of sofa 10. The rear cushion cover 30 is folded and laid on top of sandwich assembly 40. Next, arms 12 may be placed, side-by-side, on top of rear cushion cover 30. Front rail 14 and rear rail 16 may be placed side-by-side on top of arms 12. The remaining components, including the rear brackets 24, seat brackets 36, legs 18, all necessary threaded fasteners (not shown), and assembly instructions, warranty information, or other printed materials, may be sealed in a plastic hardware bag 46, which may be placed into any available space next to arms 12, front rail 14, and rear rail 16. The shipping container 50 may then be closed and sealed for shipping.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, although the teachings of the invention have been illustrated in connection with certain embodiments, there is no intent to limit the invention to such embodiments. On the contrary, the intention of this application is to cover all modifications and embodiments fairly falling within the scope of the appended claims either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents. 

1. A sandwich assembly of components of a sofa, comprising: a seat deck; a rear deck disposed opposite the seat deck; one or more seat cushions and one or more rear cushions disposed between the seat deck and rear deck; a plurality of woven bands surrounding and constraining the seat deck and rear deck such that the one or more seat cushions and one or more rear cushions are constrained under compressive force; and a pair of arms.
 2. A method of packaging sofa components, comprising: placing one or more seat cushions and one or more rear cushions between a seat deck and a rear deck, forming a stack; and placing a plurality of woven bands around the stack so as to constrain the seat deck and the rear deck from moving apart from one another.
 3. The method of packaging sofa components of claim 2, wherein in placing the plurality of woven bands around the seat deck, the plurality of woven bands includes six woven bands.
 4. The method of packaging sofa components of claim 2, wherein, in placing a plurality of woven bands around the stack, the plurality of woven bands are deposited at approximately equal intervals across the length of the stack after all bands have been placed into their final positions.
 5. The method of packaging sofa components of claim 2, wherein one or more of the seat cushions or one or more of the rear cushions have been packaged in a vacuum bag and the bag is evacuated prior to inclusion in the stack.
 6. The sandwich assembly of claim 1, further comprising at least one strap band comprising a webbing of material having noise-dampening characteristics that is securable about the seat deck prior to assembly of the sofa.
 7. The sandwich assembly of claim 6, wherein the at least one strap band comprises hook-and-loop fastener material.
 8. The sandwich assembly of claim 1, further comprising a front rail and a rear rail.
 9. The sandwich assembly of claim 8, wherein at least one of the front rail and the rear rail includes a mounting plate extending from either end of the respective front rail or rear rail, each of the mounting plates including at least two keyhole-shaped apertures to securely receive, during assembly of the sofa, bolts extending inwardly from the arms.
 10. The sandwich assembly of claim 8, wherein the at least one of the front rail and the rear rail includes a recessed region at each end thereof.
 11. The sandwich assembly of claim 8, further comprising a center brace securable between the front rail and the rear rail.
 12. The sandwich assembly of claim 1, further comprising a pair of seat brackets, each of the seat brackets having an L-shape with a plate securable to an inwardly-facing surface of one of the arms and an inwardly-projecting plate having at least one aperture therethrough to receive a threaded fastener, and wherein the seat deck includes apertures that can be aligned with the at least one apertures of the inwardly-projecting plates of the seat brackets for sofa assembly.
 13. The sandwich assembly of claim 12, wherein each of the seat brackets is securable to the respective arm at an angle in a range of 5 degrees to 20 degrees from a horizontal plane to facilitate mounting of the seat deck at a reclined angle.
 14. The sandwich assembly of claim 1, further comprising a pair of rear brackets, each of the rear brackets having an L-shape with a plate securable to an inwardly-facing surface of one of the arms and an inwardly-projecting plate having at least one aperture therethrough to receive a threaded fastener, and wherein the rear deck includes apertures that can be aligned with the at least one apertures of the inwardly-projecting plates of the rear brackets for sofa assembly.
 15. The sandwich assembly of claim 14, wherein each of the rear brackets is securable to the respective arm at an angle in a range of 95 degrees to 15 degrees from a horizontal plane to facilitate mounting of the rear deck at a reclined angle. 